This is sad news for the gay community when a major figure has news of this type. I think the release of this news on a Friday before a long holiday weekend, while hoping for not a lot of attention paid to it, underscores the sadness all around. I always was pleased to see Congresswoman Baldwin and her partner out on their lawn puttering around with plants, or doing the other mundane tasks of home ownership like taking the garbage out. The best memory was the laughter of a crowd on their balcony in the evening as I walked by. They were a couple that seemed perfect and content. It is just natural to want to see these relationships work, not only for the two involved, but also for the larger message it sends to all. This is indeed sad news.
Baldwin, a Madison Democrat and first open lesbian elected to Congress, issued a statement through her office Friday saying she and Lauren Azar are terminating their domestic partnership.
They were among the first to sign up for Wisconsin’s domestic partnership registry for same-sex couples last year.
Azar is a member of the Wisconsin Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities. She was appointed by Gov. Jim Doyle in 2007.
CAFFEINATED POLITICS 